The Pharaoh's Bride
by Rene Miashi
Summary: Ancient Egypt. The time has come for Atem to take a bride, but he must find the one who's skin is marked with true power. Nakia is just a simple actress in the local theater wishing for fame. What does the Pharaoh want with her?


Name: Nakia Makoto

Sweat slowly dripped down her temple as she ran on stage. The ever present worry that her make-up might run pounded through her head as she bounded across stage and came to a sudden halt. Slightly hunched over she looked down at the sleeping form of her fellow actor. Staring down at him in shock she paused for a moment before looking up to the audience with scared eyes. Pulling her head around to look from left to right she dropped to her knees and lifted the head of her friend into her lap. Hunching over she shook with sadness as forced tears slipped their way from her eyes and fell onto the tanned face of her pretend lover.

A loud boom echoed throughout the theater as the heavy stone doors in the back to the room were thrown open. The audience jumped in their seats and all turned to watch a large burly man stalk into the theater and down the center isle. Both actors on stage awoke from their trances and turned to watch the man barge in on their performance. The music stopped, the stage crew stepped out from behind the barriers, and audience all stared in surprise at the man as he hopped onto the stage with ease.

Turning to face the audience the man lifted his arms to make sure that all eyes were on him. Seeing that he had everyone's attention he brushed off his soldier's uniform and spoke loudly, "I am sorry to interrupt your evening, but everyone is to leave the theater at this time."

Coming too a stand both the actress and actor on stage made to approach the officer, but were stopped when one of the stage crew came up next to them and shook his head. They both looked at each other then turned to glare silently at the soldier as the audience grumpily filed out of the auditorium.

--

"What nerve that guy must have! Oh I just wish those royal guards would leave our theater alone! That's the second time this month we've been in the middle of a performance and those goons barge in with no mind to our affairs." Nakia fumed as she paced back and fourth in the staging room. "I mean, they couldn't have picked a worse time! I was right in the middle of my crying act! Do you know how hard it is to get ready for that scene? I have to spend the whole intermission thinking about home! It really sucks!" Nakia shouted as she punched the northern stone wall with her knuckles causing them to turn red.

"Nakia, calm down before you hurt yourself," Jonah said as he walked into the room with his outfit flopped over his shoulder and only a pair of off white pants on.

"I already did hurt myself…" Nakia said as she cradled her hand against her chest.

"You are such a big baby." Aria said with a laugh from her sitting position on one of the stools in the room. "How did you ever get the guts to become a dancer? I mean, I've seen you fall so many times and pop right back up, even if you sprained your ankle, and continue bouncing around like a child."

"Hey, that was a long time ago, but then I didn't hurt too badly. If it had hurt enough I probably would have plopped back down and whined about it for the next week." Nakia said as she shook her hand out and let it rest at her side.

"Right," Johan said rolling his eyes. "You're an actress, you'd fake through it."

"Probably," Nakia said with a small laugh as she adjusted her wig.

"Alright everyone, quiet down," The director instructed as he entered the staging room; the head of every cast member turned to listen to the director. "It seems that the interruption of our play was due to an important message from the Pharaoh himself." Everyone stopped dead in what they were doing to stare in utter surprise at the director. "Next week we are to perform for the Pharaoh, high priests, and some of his staff on the request of his majesty. The performance will take place on Thursday at noon."

The whole room was silent until a single shout of glee erupted from one girl's mouths sending the whole room into a joyous frenzy. Only a few people stood silent, still absorbing the news. Nakia looked over to Jonah with a stunned expression then too Aria who was jumping around with the rest of the room. A smile slowly turned Nakia's lips, but disappeared with her as she left the room. Jonah looked from Aria then to the door and sighed. Turning he left the celebrating room to follow Nakia's path.

"The Pharaoh! I cannot believe it!" Nakia said as she wandered out onto the stage in the theater. "My dreams have finally come true, I'll be able to meet the pharaoh, or at least perform for him!" She shouted dancing across the stage. "Maybe my curse…" Her voice cut out on her as she pushed off of her right foot to start a string of flips across the stage. Coming to a stop on the other side she continued, "Will not be such a burden after all!"

"What do you mean by curse?" Jonah said stepping out from the stage curtains.

Nakia spun around and stared at Jonah in shock for a moment before letting her face soften. "It's nothing, just the reasoning in my head for not being at home." Turning her back to Jonah she looked out into the empty audience.

"But, this is your home." Jonah said as he stalked up to her. He was slightly angry that after all these years she hadn't come to accept the theater as her home. "You have family here, we are all one big family." He placed his hand on Nakia's shoulder, meaning to reassure her that what he said was true.

"No, it's not." She shrugged his hand from her shoulder and walked to the other side of the stage. "This could never truly be my home. My true home possesses my mother, father, little brother, and my most precious memories. No one here could understand the great loss I suffered when I was stolen away. Just the culture shock was enough to drive me nuts."

"But you've gotten a hold of yourself and now you are one of us." Jonah said following her across the stage.

"Does this make me fit in?" Nakia turned to glare at him as she removed the ebony braided wig from her head to reveal long slightly frazzled sandy blonde hair. "Everything about the way I look makes me and outsider."

"It makes you look beautiful." Jonah announced as he snatched the wig from Nakia's hand and threw it too the floor. "You are a one of a kind, you are you. Just because you look different from us doesn't mean that you are different." Jonah reached out and pulled Nakia into his body. "Just because you look different doesn't mean that you aren't loved."

Nakia froze in his arms. She was uncertain if she should push him away or return his words with a statement of her own. After only a moment of silence Nakia finally made up her mind. Pulling away from Jonah she slipped from his grasp and stared up into his chocolate orbs. "I'm sorry, but I can't."

"Wait, Nakia" Jonah quickly moved to pull her back, but was shoved away when a sliver blast of light suddenly engulfed the young actress's body. Repelled by the force of the light Jonah fell back into his butt. Nakia looked down at him, un-phased by the light as if it had never flashed.

"…What…" Nakia suddenly turned on her heel and left the stage at a full sprint. Running past the green room and the staging room she ignored the calls of the people she passed. Blindly running a familiar path she headed for the stairs then to the cat walk above the theater. Collapsing across the thin boards of the cat walk she slowly pulled her body into her core and held her legs tightly too her chest. Resting her head against the planks of the catwalk she closed her eyes and tried to remember home. "Mommy…"

It had been a week since Nakia and Jonah had last spoken outside of rehearsal and to be frank Nakia couldn't care less. After spending the night on the cat walk she was willing to treat Jonah just like everyone else she casually talked to, if not a little less. She didn't mean to be harsh on him; in fact she thought she was going easy on him. The last person who had asked her to be his girlfriend was disowned and shunned from her small group of friends, but that was because he was just a little… weird.

"Alright everyone, gather around." The director called to the people on stage. "We have two hours until our audience will enter through those doors." The Director turned to motion towards the doors in the back of the room. "The layout of this room will be much different when next you see it. None of you will have ever seen the theater in such extravagance, with the exception of the older staff members and me." The director turned back to the curious crowd of stage members and smiled. "This will be a magnificent day. I wish you luck, especially to Jonah, Kikai, and Nakia, our lead performers." The director smiled at the three performers and bowed his head to them. They all followed suit and bowed deeply to him. Standing straight they all turned in sync to look at the rest of the cast and then bowed to them. The theater swelled with the cheers of the staff, but all too soon the stage was empty.

"Hey, Nakia?" a young girl named Carliegh ask as she tugged on Nakia's skirt gently with her small hands. Everyone was back stage waiting for the cue to open the curtains and start. Nakia turned and looked down at the girl and smiled. She was the daughter of the stage manager, a cute, bouncing, and curious little girl.

"Yes sweetie? Is there something you need?" She said softly kneeling down to the girl's eye level.

"Good luck tonight!" The little girl offered as she handed Nakia a small golden ring. Nakia looked down at the ring for a long moment, wondering where the child had gotten it from, but before she could ask the child ran off to her mother who was standing by the closed curtains.

"Thanks…" She whispered as she stared down at the ring. "Huh… who is this from?" She asked herself as she walked off towards the dressing rooms to put on her first costume.


End file.
